Memory, Remember Me?
by Silvershadow1142
Summary: Almanzo and Laura's first kiss leaves her breathless. And 2 weeks later, he causes her to forget everything everything about him. She is confused and he is heartbroken. Their young love is strong but can it survive this? Together they will need to regain all that was lost using their faith and will. and how can one essay bring them together again?


**A/N: Hi, this is my first time writing for Little House, so if you would be so kind to share your thoughts with me, even if you hated it, I would be extremely grateful. Oh and ****_italics_**** show a characters thoughts. And this took awhile to write as I'm still getting used to this genre, so it may take longer than I want it to to update, but please stay with me, I have so much planned. Oh and this is set after "Sweet Sixteen" and before "He loves me, He Loves Me Not, Part 1". Thanks for reading!**

It just couldn't be real. How could it? Something like that couldn't have happened. There was no chance. And yet… it sure felt real. More real than any of her daydreams ever felt. Laura pondered these thoughts as the rest of her classmates wrote hurriedly. There were only ten minutes left before their history reports were due.

Laura had hers finished already. Mrs. Wilder had assigned the project yesterday, so the students could work on them last night if they wished. Unconsciously, Laura sighed happily. She could remember how warm and happy Manly's first kiss made her feel. She could still feel how strong and gentle his hands were as he guided her around Nellie's, dancing elegantly to the soft music. The warm atmosphere of happiness and love surrounded her.

Something so happy, so wonderful, just had to be real. But it didn't feel possible and Laura wished she could find a way to make her experience tangible. She glanced around the one-room schoolhouse. Did writing things make them seem real? Is that why Mrs. Wilder was always assigning them history reports?

Excitedly, she flipped opened her tablet to an empty page and let her pencil fly across the paper:

_Two weeks ago was the social at Nellie's. I was so excited to be going. Pa had already told me there was a really good chance Almanzo could be in love with me. I wore my new orange and teal dress I had gotten when I was getting ready to teach for the first time. In my hair were little white flowers and a new ribbon. It took me a minute to find him, where he was sitting outside by himself. He said that he wasn't sure I would be coming tonight but he brought my present anyway. It was a beautiful flowered scarf. I placed it around my shoulders carefully. And then, that's when it happened. He was looking at me and I was looking at him. I leaned in closer without taking my eyes off of him. Almanzo kissed me, tenderly and as gentle as could be. "How you like to dance with the teacher?" I asked him softly. "I'd love to." I had never been so happy. We whirled around the restaurant, lost in each other's eyes._

"Time's up children. Albert, would you please collect the papers?" Laura's brother rose from where he sat next to Andy and gathered up all the reports. Unknown to Laura, she gave her brother the wrong paper; her civil war report was still in her tablet. In Albert's hands was the paragraph she wrote about her and Almanzo.

The day dragged by slowly, and Laura's impatience grew with each moment. She hadn't seen Manly since she felt his strong arms holding her, since they had looked into each other's eyes, since they shared that warm kiss. In the two weeks since the dance, she had finished her teaching job and returned home and Almanzo had been building a new house for some settlers they met at the dance. With all that work, he couldn't find the time to take her home for the weekends, so her pa had done it. How had she survived this long?! She missed the days when he would wave to her at lunch or ask her about her day when he came by to pick his sister up after school.

Mrs. Wilder continued on with whatever she was talking about, but Laura was so absorbed in her own thoughts she didn't even know what subject the lesson was on. Desperately, she wished she could think of an excuse to visit him while he was working. Why do she need one? Could she just go there for no reason but to see him? Would that be proper? After all, Nellie Oleson had told her once that the girl should never approach the guy, after Laura had introduced herself to Luke Simms.

Then again, since when did Laura care about anything that Nellie Oleson had said? And when had she cared about appearances? _I need to see him_! Laura felt like she was going out of her mind.

"…can anyone tell me who Abraham Lincoln's Vice President was during his second term?" Mrs. Wilder glanced around the room full of raised hands. Her gaze stopped on Laura, seeing that the student's eyes were distant and unfocused. "Laura Ingalls?"

Carrie nudged her sister, snapping Laura back into reality. She took in the stares of her classmates and her teacher's stern look, knowing very well she was due for a scolding. The expectant look her teacher gave her told her Miss Wilder asked her a question.

"Um." What else could she say? There was no point in trying to pretend she had been paying attention. Mrs. Wilder knew she had been inattentive. The whole class knew. "Could you repeat that question?"

"I asked who Abraham Lincoln's Vice president was during his second term." The annoyance in her voice grew more evident.

"Andrew Jackson." There was some satisfaction in knowing she had the correct answer. Mrs. Wilder's stern look remained on her student and she breathed a loud sigh.

"Yes, Laura. That is correct. Perhaps next time you could pay attention to the lesson, so I won't have to keep you after class. The rest of you are dismissed." There was some cheering at that and shuffles of feet hurrying outside. Laura noticed Albert giving her a glance of sympathy before going with Willie and Andy to play baseball with the other boys.

Laura squared her shoulders before walking over to Mrs. Wilder's desk and looked her teacher in the eye. She took a deep breath as Mrs. Wilder began to speak. "Laura, ever since you've returned from your teaching position, you're been inattentive and dreamy. Your schoolwork isn't up to its usual standards. That isn't like you."

"Sorry Miss. Wilder." Laura couldn't think of anything else to say. She certainty couldn't tell her Miss Wilder that she had been day-dreaming about Almanzo.

"You need to start focusing better and keeping your mind on your work. As you have been a teacher once, I expect more from you and should think you of all people will understand how important this is."

Laura nodded. "Yes ma'am. Am I dismissed now?" Mrs. Wilder nodded. Laura gathered up her books quickly, bid a hasty good -bye to Miss Wilder and rushed out of the school building. Carrie, who had been jumping rope with the other girls, came right up to her big sister as soon as Laura appeared.

"Why are you always day dreaming?" The little girl asked, her voice sounding childishly young for her age, as it always had.

"Just am." Laura was so pent up she hardly thought about her reply.

"Did you get in trouble?" Carrie wondered.

"No. Come on. let's go. Albert!" She called over to her brother, who sighed and said goodbye to Andy before joining his sisters.

The three siblings walked down the well-worn path to home. Usually walking home from school brought on a whole slew of memories for Laura but today her head was too full of Almanzo. She replayed their first kiss, remembering the look in his eyes. She thought again how sweet it had been to dance with him, how special it was to her.

Finally they reached the point in the path where she would break away from her siblings and run over the hill to the site where Almanzo was building a house for the new settlers. "You guys go ahead. Tell Ma I'll be late."

"Why?" Carrie asked.

"Cause I will be late." Laura was keeping her answers short, unwillingly to let anyone know how much she had been obsessing over him.

Albert however, knew his sister only too well. "Cause she's going to see Almanzo, Carrie." He used the same sneering tone he always did when he brought up his sister's affection for the man. This time, however, Laura didn't notice. She hardly spared them a second glance as she run up and over the hill.

She stopped beside a tree not too far from the house to fix her hair and straighten her dress. She peered around the trunk to look at him.

As much as she had been thinking about him, her memories hadn't done him justice. His skin was tanner than she remembered, but that was because he had been working outside every day. His hat sat comfortably on his blonde hair and his blue eyes, she had forgotten quite how blue they were, sparkled as he talked with Mr. Wilson, the settler who had hired him. He seemed taller than her memory had suggested and there were a few new freckles on his arms, easily visible as his sleeves were rolled up.

Suddenly, she felt so stupid for coming. If he had wanted to see her, wouldn't he have just come by her house? He probably decided she was still a little girl and wasn't interested. _But I'm a woman! And I'll go over there and show you!_

Of course, as soon as she made her mind to go talk to him, nerves danced in her belly like butterflies. She tried to push them aside and failed. As much as she wanted to be with him, she couldn't get past it. She turned and started running back in the direction of her house.

"Beth!" It was Almanzo, of course. No one else called her Beth. There was joy and relief in his voice, which echoed exactly how Laura felt when she heard him call out to her. She stopped running and turned to look at him. The man jogged over to where she stood and smiled down at her. "I'm glad you came. I wanted to come by to see you tonight…but I wasn't sure if you would want me to. "

"You did?" She asked, hardly believing it. He was just as nervous about their new relationship as she was! That was comforting.

"Yeah I've missed you, Beth." He looked right into her eyes, still smiling that dimpled smile. _Oh. Oh my. Breathe. Just breathe. In out, in out_

"I've missed you too." It came out as a squeak. He then leaned over and tucked a stray lock her hair behind her ear. Both of them smiled at his touch.

As though they were sharing the same thoughts, they both started walking back to the unfinished house together without saying a word. As they talked about the rest of her teaching job and his working on the house, Laura felt her nerves vanish completely. She did feel a little silly though; how could she have ever been scared to be with him? It was as natural as breathing.

* * *

Meanwhile, Miss. Wilder was still at the schoolhouse, even though the students had gone home long ago. She still had a few more Civil War reports to go over. When she reached for the next one in the stack, she saw with surprise there was no name on it. She did quickly recognize Laura's handwriting.

_She's so unfocused she doesn't even put her name on her work_. The teacher shook her head irritably. She had been too soft on Laura this afternoon; Laura should have been punished. As she read the paper, he eyes grew wider and wider. This was unlike any civil war report she had ever read, and unlike any assignment Laura had ever turned in!

Concern took over Eliza Jane's thoughts and actions. She gather up her things and left the school abruptly. She needed to talk with her brother about this at once. Her pace brought her to Almanzo's worksite quicker than she had anticipated. She had been about to call out to her brother when she saw Laura.

The girl was standing next to her brother and they were both laughing and smiling. Again, he reached over and smoothed a lock of her hair behind her ear and then Laura said something, Miss Wilder was too far away to hear what it was, and they both laughed.

That was the final straw for Eliza Jane. Marching down the hill, she determinedly stepped over to her brother. Laura blushed with embarrassment and could not speak. "I'd like a word with you. Alone." Concern had made her tone sharper than she had intended and so the words were almost a hiss.

Stammering, Laura said, "Yeah…sure…I mean I had.. had to..go off..and uh…chores and homework…and yeah…bye."

Almazon smiled to himself, despite being worried about his sister. "Beth looked cute when she blushed." he thought. Aloud he said, "No wait. I want to talk with you some more." Laura nodded but still walked off aways, to give Miss Wilder and Almanzo privacy.

She wondered around to the other side of the house, losing herself in her thoughts again.

"What are you doing? You're rushing into this!" Miss Wilder said, again the words coming out sharp even though she was only concerned, not angry.

"I am not! We were only talking!" Almanzo reacted defensively, surprised his sister seemed to be angry. He didn't realize Eliza Jane's harsh tone was unintentional.

"Even so, she's only just 16." Miss Wilder didn't realize age was a touchy subject for Almanzo, who had just barely gotten over that issue himself.

"It doesn't matter to us anymore. We have fun together, so why should that change anything? Besides it isn't your business." He was flat out angry now.

"It is my business if she can't focus in school and do her work properly." Eliza Jane replied. Almanzo seemed about to reply but a wild scream stopped him. Quickly following was a loud cry of pain.

"Beth!" Both Almanzo and Eliza Jane rushed over to where Laura's scream had come from.

While they had been arguing, Laura had been in her own world with her thoughts. She had not noticed the pile of wood and tripped over it. She stumbled again, trying to regain her balance, and fell into the unfinished supports for the roof. She let out a frightened scream as a few of the roof beams collapsed and then cried out in pain as they fell on her.

Almanzo gasped and guilt washed over him like the sun's rays. "We need Doctor Baker!" Pain lit his voice, making the words a sob.


End file.
